


Visions of Despair

by Drachis917



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Angst, Memory Loss, Multi, Post-Despair (Dangan Ronpa), Post-Super Dangan Ronpa 2, Remnants of Despair (Dangan Ronpa), Super Dangan Ronpa 2 Spoilers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-02
Updated: 2020-05-06
Packaged: 2021-02-27 20:54:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 12
Words: 13,871
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22532053
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Drachis917/pseuds/Drachis917
Summary: When the survivors of the Killing School Trip wake up from the Neo World Program, their memories not completely restored, they make an attempt to live a normal life while hoping that the rest of their friends awake as well. However, their despair will not disappear so easily. As they begin to have visions of their missing memories, can they hold on to hope, or will they give into despair?
Relationships: Koizumi Mahiru/Saionji Hiyoko, Kuzuryu Fuyuhiko/Pekoyama Peko, Sonia Nevermind/Soda Kazuichi (One Sided), Sonia Nevermind/Tanaka Gundham
Comments: 11
Kudos: 110





	1. Awakening

Nothingness. That was the first thing Hajime felt when he woke up. Surrounded by darkness, he couldn’t tell whether he had his eyes closed or not. As feeling spread into his limbs, his entire body felt heavy, and he was barely able to raise his arms. He felt like he was trying to wake up after a long sleep, working his eyes open, memory only beginning to catch up to him. 

The last thing he remembered… 

The… Last thing… 

Hajime’s eyes flew open. The Neo World program… When it was shut down, he wasn’t supposed to remember it. Nevertheless, he did. He remembered himself, his friends, the killing game, everything. He tried to raise his arms, pressing his hands against the green glass above him. He tried to call for help, his voice hoarse from disuse, making him wonder exactly how long he had been in the program. 

A figure appeared above him, distorted slightly by the glass. Hajime pounded the glass again, hoping that whoever they were could help them out. A hissing noise filled his ears, and the glass slowly lifted away. When he could see who his rescuer was, he let out a small gasp. Makoto Naegi, the Ultimate Hope himself, was standing above him with a small smile on his face. 

“Hey,” Makoto said, “Are you okay? It’s Hajime, right?” 

“I-” Hajime coughed, “Yeah, I think I’m fine.” 

“Do you, uh,” Makoto asked, unsure of what to say, “What do you remember?” 

“I remember… The Neo World program. It’s a little hazy, but it’s there.” 

“What about anything, uh, before that?” Makoto asked hesitantly. 

“You’re talking about my time as an Ultimate Despair, right?” Hajime clarified, “No, not yet. Do you know why?” 

“We don’t, unfortunately,” Makoto said, “But that’s a good thing, right?” 

“I suppose so,” Hajime admitted, “I doubt there’s anything I would want to remember from then anyway. Could you help me up? I don’t think I can stand.” 

“Oh, of course.” 

Makoto reached into the pod, gripping Hajime’s arm and pulling him up into a standing position. Hajime stumbled immediately, his legs quickly giving out from under him. The only reason he didn’t fall completely was Makoto’s support. Hajime’s vision was suddenly obscured, surprising him before he realized it was his long hair falling in front of his face. Why didn’t he bother cutting his hair in the past two years? Surely it must get in the way pretty frequently. 

“Steady now,” Makoto said, pulling Hajime back to his feet, “You don’t have to go so fast.” 

“How long were we in there?” Hajime asked. 

“A little less than a month,” Makoto explained, “It might take a while for you to fully recover from it.” 

“My friends… when will they wake up?” 

“I’m sorry, we don’t know.” 

“Can I see them?” 

“Sure.” 

Makoto led Hajime around the circle of pods, letting him look in at his former classmates and Remnants of Despair. Most of them looked fairly similar to how he remembered them, albeit older, but there were some noticeable differences. He supposed he expected that, given the two years they all spent under Junko’s control, but it was still jarring. 

Kazuichi Soda. Missing his usual beanie, his spiked magenta hair looked longer than before, and unusual pair of black gloves joining his mechanic outfit. It would have been intimidating if not for the fact that he had become Hajime’s best friend during their time in the program. 

Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu. The yakuza leader looked almost identical to when he had last seen him; Hajime knew he would be mad about still having a short stature. It took him a moment to realize that the familiar eyepatch was out of place. Didn’t he only lose his eye in the simulation? 

Peko Pekoyama. The first person he came across that hadn’t survived the game. Laid down next to her master, her sword laid across her chest, as if she was protecting him even in her comatose state. 

Mikan Tsumiki. She worried Hajime, because she had remembered her time as a Despair while they were in the program. Would she still be dangerous if she woke up? 

Gundham Tanaka. Was that a straightjacket? When had that happened? A second scar adorned his face, as well as a tattoo on his forehead resembling a paw print. Hajime was relieved to see his Four Dark Devas of Destruction nestled into their master’s scarf, the hamsters having never abandoned their eccentric owner even in despair. 

Akane Owari. Her already toned body had become quite muscular, and while she was never shy about her assets, her shirt almost made it look like she was showing off. While she was always a force to be reckoned with, Hajime hoped he never had to fight her. 

Nekomaru Nidai. The last time Hajime had seen him alive, his original body had been permanently damaged and replaced with a robotic one, so it took him a moment to fully recognize the team manager. He knew the coach would be disappointed; Nekomaru told him that he suffered from heart problems, and his new body was a new chance at life. 

Ibuki Mioda. Her multicolored hair was much longer and wilder than he remembered. He hoped she would recover, as her exuberant personality had never failed to raise the group’s spirits. 

Teruteru Hanamura. The chef had traded his traditional white outfit for a deep red one. Fitting for a Despair, but Hajime knew he would want to trade it right away for something more professional. 

Sonia Nevermind. She was the very picture of royal elegance, outfitted with a grand tiara and a dress so opulent that Hajime wondered how she was able to walk in it. She was one of the strongest people he knew, and it was still hard to believe she became a Despair like the rest of them. 

Mahiru Koizumi. She looked to have changed the least out of his classmates, her beloved camera still clutched in her grip. Hajime wished that he had a chance to get to know her better. 

Hiyoko Saionji. He had found a newspaper clipping showing her older appearance when the program was glitching out, but the difference between the little brat he knew and the elegant young lady before him was still a bit shocking. 

Byakuya - no, the Ultimate Impostor. Hajime didn’t know the strange man’s true name or appearance, but he could see some of his former friend in the person lying before him. 

Lastly, Nagito Komaeda. Despite the chain around his neck, compared to the last time Hajime had seen him, he looked almost peaceful. When was the last time he had looked this serene? Had he ever been able to rest like this? 

Arriving back at his own pod, Hajime quickly numbered off the people here. Counting himself, they numbered fifteen. So it was true. Chiaki Nanami really was just a part of the program. He didn’t want to believe it, but there was no way he could deny that the girl no longer existed. 

Makoto gently brushed a hand over his cheek, and only then did Hajime realize he had been crying. “I know it’s hard,” he said, “Seeing all these people you thought were dead. At least they have a chance at recovery.” A melancholy note entered his voice, “I can’t save the people I’ve lost.” 

“I’m sorry,” Hajime sniffed, wiping his arm across his face, “I didn’t mean to remind you of something so sad.” 

“Don’t worry, I’ve mostly gotten over it. I don’t know if I’ll ever recover completely, but I’ve accepted everything that’s happened. Anyway, do you want me to help you to your room?” 

“I have a room? Nevermind, yeah, I’ll come.” 

Makoto helped Hajime walk up the stairs and out of the familiar building. As he pushed open the door to a very recognizable beach. “This is…” Hajime murmured. 

“Yep,” Makoto grinned, “Welcome back to Jabberwock Island.” 


	2. Adjustments

Hajime lay on the comfortable bed in his provided cabin, wishing he could do something. Sighing, he lifted himself up carefully and hobbled over to the mirror on the wall. He brushed his hair away from his eyes and faced another shock: his left eye had become a bright red color. Sighing at yet another change, he began rummaging through the drawers in search of a pair of scissors. He eventually found what he was looking for and turned back to the mirror to begin cutting his hair back to a more conventional length. 

After he had styled his hair to one he was more familiar with, he carefully walked to the door, wanting to be with his friends again. Even though they were comatose, it was better than being alone. Besides, if any of them woke up, it would be better for them to wake up in the company of someone they knew. 

Opening the door, Hajime noticed a walker just outside. He guessed it was to help him walk easier, and made a mental note to thank Makoto for it next time he saw him. As he was making his way back to the building the rest of his classmates were in, he heard voices around the corner. Trying to be as quiet as he could, he walked closer, wanting to hear who was talking. 

“I’m still unsure about this,” a male voice came from around the corner. 

“Come on, Byakuya,” came another voice, that one belonging to Makoto, “Hajime doesn’t remember his time as a Despair, so the others probably won’t either.” 

“‘Probably’ isn’t going to cut it,” another voice said, this one female. 

“I know that,” Makoto responded, “But we should at least give them a chance.” 

“I agree with that,” the woman said, “Although I doubt that the rest of the Foundation will. They never agreed to the rehabilitation project in the first place.” 

“You have a point, Kyoko,” Makoto sighed, “Maybe we could tell them they escaped?” 

“Even if we told them that, it would still endanger the students,” Byakuya argued, “They would still be believed to be a threat, and the Foundation would be kept on high alert. They might even be hunted down, which would be a fruitless endeavor.” 

“Perhaps we could excuse it as a quarantine?” Kyoko suggested, “They are the Remnants of Despair, after all. We could say we’ve imprisoned them for the sake of the rest of the world.” 

“That’s a great idea!” Makoto said, “I knew I could count on you, Kyoko.”

“You don’t have to hug me,” Kyoko said quietly, sounding somewhat embarrassed. 

“Ugh, do you have to do that in front of me?” Byakuya complained. 

“S-sorry,” Makoto said. 

Hajime took that as his cue that it was okay to move. He walked through the hall, casually waving to the three of them. 

“Hi, Hajime,” Makoto said, “How are you doing?” 

“I’m good, thanks,” Hajime responded, “It’s still kind of hard to walk, but otherwise, I’m fine.” 

“May I ask what you’re doing here?” Byakuya asked. 

“I just wanted to be with my friends for a while,” Hajime explained, “Just in case they wake up, you know?” 

“I suppose,” Kyoko said, “Do you need directions?” 

“No, but thank you.” 

He continued down the hall, hoping the building had an elevator so he didn’t have to hobble down a staircase. Fortunately, there was one, and he took it down to the basement. 

The doors opened and Hajime stepped out to the slightly ominous room his friends were held in. There were no lights, save for the green glow coming from the pods. Sighing, Hajime walked to the empty pod and sat on its lid. Burying his face in his hands. Even among the survivors of the game, they were still unsure if any of them would wake, and it was even less likely that they would remember their time in the program. Hajime wished that there was something he could do to help them. 

As if on cue, a light tapping sound came from his left. He turned, trying to identify exactly where the sound came from. Stumbling slightly, he stood and quickly scrambled to the next pod in the circle. Sure enough, Kazuichi’s eyes were open and filled with panic as he frantically pounded his hands against the glass. 

“Hey, calm down!” Hajime yelled, unsure if he could be heard, but trying nonetheless, “I’ll get you out of there, just hold on.” 

Kazuichi froze at the sight of a familiar face, but seemed to get what Hajime had said, nodding and letting his arms fall to his sides. 

Hajime looked to the terminal that seemed to be connected to Kazuichi’s pod, trying to figure out what he should do. The buttons were nondescript, and the monitor was showing a higher than normal heart rate. He supposed that made sense, waking up captured in a strange place would make anyone panic, especially someone as skittish as Kazuichi. He pondered which button he should press, as none of them were clearly labeled. 

“I guess I’ll just have to rely on luck for this,” Hajime muttered. He glanced over to where Nagito was sleeping, hoping that the Ultimate Lucky Student would somehow grant him good fortune, closed his eyes, and pressed a button. 

A hissing noise emanated from the pod, making Hajime open one eye to look. He gave a sigh of relief when he saw the lid raising. 

“You okay, Kazuichi?” Hajime asked, stepping to his side. 

“Yeah, I’m-” the mechanic tried to push himself into a sitting position, but his shaking arms gave out, making him fall back, “Ow! Why do I feel so weak?” 

“We’ve been in the program for almost a month,” Hajime explained. 

“A  _ month _ ?” Kazuichi yelled, “What are you- ah!” he gasped in pain, clutching his head. He reflexively tried to pull his hat over his eyes, not realizing it wasn’t there, and groped the air in confusion for a moment before settling on running his fingers through his magenta hair. “What the hell?” he muttered. 

“Are you alright?” Hajime asked, concerned. 

“I’m good,” Kazuichi said, sounding strained, “It just all come back at once. I wasn’t expecting that.” 

“It happened to me too,” Hajime said, “Do you want some help? I’m still pretty weak, so I may not be much, but…” 

“Hey, at least you’re walking,” Kazuichi quipped, reaching up to him, “Help a bro out, will ya?” 

Hajime carefully gripped the mechanic’s hand and tried to pull him up. To both of their surprise, Hajime was much stronger than he thought, and lifted Kazuichi to his feet almost effortlessly. 

“Dude,” Kazuichi said, steadying himself as best he could, “I thought you said you were weak. That was badass!” 

“I thought I was, too,” Hajime said, confused, “I guess I recovered more quickly than I thought I would.” 

“Damn, dude, are you superhuman or something?” 

“I- ghk!” Hajime stuttered, his head flaring in pain. 

“Woah, are you okay?” Kazuichi asked, concerned. 

“I’m okay,” Hajime growled, “It’s just a headache.” 

“If you say so…” 

Ignoring the pain, Hajime hefted Kazuichi to his feet so the two of them could get out of the basement. Hajime was glad to have at least one of his friends back, but something was gnawing at the back of his mind. It felt like there was something he should remember, but couldn’t, even though it was just within reach. It was frustrating, not being able to remember exactly how he had overcome his despair. But at the same time, he was scared of what he might discover. 


	3. Pain

The next day, Sonia woke from her slumber. Kazuichi was elated to see her again, and quickly slipped back into his routine of doting on her. Fuyuhiko recovered the morning of the following day, and Akane awoke the same evening. The five survivors of the killing school trip were back together, but the question still remained: would anyone else wake up? 

“Of course they’re gonna wake up!” Akane yelled, pounding her fist onto the table, “There’s no way someone as strong as coach Nekomaru would stay asleep forever!” 

“But… we don’t know that for sure,” Kazuichi pointed out, “The Future Foundation said it was a miracle that the five of us even woke up, and we were the ones who  _ didn’t _ die.” 

“Stop thinking like that,” Sonia commanded, “We need to have hope, now more than ever. I believe in our friends, and you should too.” 

“Okay,” Kazuichi said immediately, “Sorry, Miss Sonia. Won’t happen again.” 

“I just…” Fuyuhiko growled, tapping his fingers on the table in frustration, “I want to see Peko again. To tell her… fuck, I don’t know. That I’m sorry or some shit.” 

“I also would like to speak to them again,” Sonia said, “Even though I do not know what I would say. It would be so nice to talk to Gundham once more.” 

Kazuichi grimaced at the mention of his rival’s name, but said nothing. 

“Ugh…” Fuyuhiko let out a loud sigh, fingering his eyepatch, “My eye hurts…” 

“Yeah, what’s up with the eyepatch, Baby Gangsta? You only lost your eye in the simulation, right?” Akane asked. 

“Don’t call me Baby Gangsta,” Fuyuhiko retorted, though without his usual venom, “I don’t know why I have it. I haven’t looked.” 

“Why?” Kazuichi asked, “You scared or something?” 

“Are you shitting me?” Fuyuhiko yelled, “I-I’m not scared! Why would I be scared to see an empty hole in my face?” 

“I think it’s perfectly reasonable to be scared,” Hajime said. 

“Oh, fuck you!” Fuyuhiko angrily got to his feet and stormed out of the restaurant. 

“Geez, what’s gotten into him?” Akane grumbled, reaching across the table for more food. 

“Eh, he’s always like that,” Kazuichi said, leaning back in his chair, “Let him blow off some steam, he’ll be back.” 

“Even so, I’m worried about him,” Sonia said, “Remember what the Future Foundation said about us? That we might remember what happened while we were Despairs?” 

“I’ll check on him,” Hajime said, “Make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid.” 

As Hajime left the restaurant, Sonia let out a long sigh. 

“What’s wrong, Miss Sonia?” Kazuichi asked. 

“Nothing in particular,” Sonia responded, “I’m going to check on the others, just in case any of them have woken up. I know it seems unlikely, but abandoning them just because they probably won’t recover doesn’t feel right.” 

“I suppose,” Akane said, “Check on Nekomaru for me, will ya?” 

“Of course, pal,” Sonia confirmed, the casual lingo sounding odd with her regal tone. She left the table to go downstairs, gripping the railings to make sure she wouldn’t fall if her still-weakened legs gave out. When she arrived in the eerie room, she circled the pods to see if anyone had woken up - they hadn’t - and made her way to Gundham’s pod. 

“Oh, Gundham,” she spoke to him, “I would so like to speak to you again. I want to hear you talk about your magic, see your hamsters do tricks, anything. We still need to go to your amusement park in hell. You sacrificed yourself for our sake, and now I can’t even say thank you. Please, wake up. If not today, then tomorrow. Or the day after.” 

Predictably, the eccentric breeder didn’t respond. He was likely too deep in slumber to even hear her talking to him. That wasn’t going to stop her, though. 

“You told me once that you had more pets than just your Four Dark Devas. When you wake up, could I meet them? Are they all hamsters, or do you have other animals, like cats and dogs or even snakes? You seem like the type of person that would have a snake at some point in your life. You might name it something dramatic, like Eclipse, or - I know! What was the name of that snake in Norse mythology? Jormin… gander? Something like that, perhaps.” 

The princess placed her hand on the glass separating them. She hovered over the belts constricting his arms like a straightjacket, wondering where they came from and wishing she could undo them. 

“Ah!” A sudden bolt of pain shot through her temples. Pausing to rub her forehead, a low buzzing noise filled her ears. Was she having a migraine? If that’s what this was, Sonia decided that she didn’t like it. The world began to spin around her, nearly making her lose her balance, and she clung to Gundham’s pod to avoid falling over. 

_ “Will you stay with me?”  _

What was that? 

_ “Of course, My Lady. I shall stay by your side, now and forever.”  _

Who was saying those words? 

_ “Excellent. You’ll be the perfect partner for the times ahead.”  _

“Stop!” Sonia yelled, clutching her head in pain, “Who are you?” Suddenly, the pain vanished, and she was left alone again with only her sleeping friends for company. 

“What… what was that?” Sonia asked. No one but her comatose friends were in the room, and none of them provided an answer. 


	4. Clash

“Hey, Hajime!” Akane called, striding across the beach, “How’s everyone’s favorite gangster doing?” 

“Fuyuhiko’s fine,” he answered, “He’s resting in his room.” 

“Oh, so that’s where he is,” she said, “Anyway, I want you to spar with me!” 

“W-what?” Hajime asked, “Why me?” 

“I need to get my strength back, and you’re the only one I could think of who could help me,” Akane announced, “Baby Gangsta needs his rest, Soda would probably cry if I punched him, and I would never hit a princess, even if we are friends. That just leaves you. So how about it? You ready?” 

“Uh, I guess,” Hajime said, getting into what he thought was a good fighting position. 

“Great!” Akane yelled, rushing forward and throwing a punch at his head. 

Hajime ducked the punch and tried to sweep Akane’s legs out from under her. “Why are you so into fighting?” he asked as she jumped over his attempt to topple her. 

“‘Cause it’s fun!” she responded, throwing another powerful blow, “It also helped me bond with Coach Nekomaru, so I do it in his memory!” 

“You make it sound like he’s dead,” Hajime said, barely blocking her kick, “He’s technically still alive.” 

“I know, and that’s why I gotta train harder!” Akane yelled, “When he wakes up, I’m gonna show him how strong I’ve gotten and finally beat him!” 

Akane dashed at Hajime, spurred by her desire for victory. Unsure if he could block this time, Hajime had an idea. He waited until the last moment, spun to the side, and kicked Akane, making her fall to the sandy beach, defeated. 

“Woah!” Akane exclaimed, sitting up and spitting sand out of her mouth, “That was cool! Where’d you learn to do that?” 

“To be honest, I’m not sure,” Hajime admitted, “I was mostly going by instinct.” 

“Well, you’ve got some good fucking instincts!” Akane encouraged, “Let’s do this again sometime!” 

“O-okay, sounds good,” Hajime said, still a little in shock over his own prowess. Where had his sudden skill come from? Now that he thought about it, a similar thing happened when he was cutting his hair. He only intended to get it to a reasonable length, but he had somehow managed to effortlessly style it to his preferred look. What was going on? 

“Hey, what’s with that look?” Akane asked, noticing her friend’s concern, “Cheer up! You’re a cool guy, and you should be proud of your victory.” 

“...I guess you’re right,” Hajime said, “Thanks.” 

“No problem! Anyway, I’m gonna go check on Coach. See ya tomorrow!” she waved, jogging back to the hotel. 

Despite Akane’s encouragement, Hajime was still concerned. He wasn’t an Ultimate; he was just a reserve course student. He didn’t have any special talents until now. And to make things worse, he still couldn’t quite remember how he had managed to defeat Junko and escape the program. There had to be something in those missing memories that could help him solve this mystery. 

He ran his fingers through his hair, frustrated, though he quickly became confused when he felt an odd line of raised skin around his scalp. Was it scar tissue or something? It wasn’t as if he could see it, since it was hidden under his hair. He could tell from feeling it that it was a straight line, so it was unlikely it was from an injury.

Hajime felt a dull throbbing through his head, and he decided it would be best to get some rest. He stumbled back to his cottage, trying to ignore the growing pain. When he arrived, he collapsed into bed, exhausted. The world blurred and twisted around him, making him close his eyes. He must have been more tired than he thought if he felt this out of it. 

A strange voice began to fill the room. 

_ “Boring.” _

Hajime groaned, rubbing his eyes. 

He heard the light tapping of fingers gliding across a keyboard. 

_ “Everything is so boring. [-+#-#*] is always yammering on about hope never dying, but [#@-*#] leads me to believe otherwise.  _ **_Hope_ ** _ versus  _ **_despair_ ** _ …” _

[+-%#@] let out a small, humorless laugh. 

Who could they be talking about?

_ “The conflict interests me. But the [@-+*$- @#-*%-+#=#] is planning to end it…” _

What conflict?

“I’ll just mess with their plans. I’ll create a way for the conflict to continue, and I might finally see which side claims victory. After all, there’s no way I can fail.” 


	5. Nightmare

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick warning for creepy imagery involving eyes. If you want to skip it, it starts at "...Despair." and ends at "This was all too much to handle."

The skies had turned blood red. Fuyuhiko stood on a bridge that had been cleanly snapped in two, looking down upon a ruined city. A loud noise caught the yakuza heir’s attention, and he looked up just in time to see a building collapse and crumble to dust. 

“What the fuck?” Fuyuhiko whispered, “What is going on?” 

“I believe I can answer that.” 

Fuyuhiko whipped around to see a man of similar height wearing a long coat and hat that obscured his face approaching him. “W-who the fuck are you?” he asked, before a bolt of pain shot through his right eye (eye socket?), making him stumble backwards in pain. His foot slipped on the end of the bridge and he began to lose his balance before the stranger stepped forward and grabbed his collar, preventing him from falling. 

“Easy there,” the stranger said, taking off his hat, “We don’t want you getting hurt, now do we?” 

The yakuza heir gasped. “No, this- this can’t be real,” he said, “This is just some really fucked-up dream. There’s no way you can be…” 

“You?” the identical stranger finished the sentence for him, “I suppose. I’m not Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu, heir to the Kuzuryu clan,” he allowed a moment of relief before continuing, “I’m Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu,  _ leader  _ of the Kuzuryu clan.” 

“Leader?” Fuyuhikp yelled, incredulous, “That’s not possible! My parents are still alive!” 

“Are they?” the pain was getting worse, “Have you ever considered that there might be another reason why you aren’t allowed to contact your family? You are missing two whole fucking years of memories, after all. Memories that are stored-” he tapped his temple, “in here.” 

“Wait a minute…” Fuyuhiko began to understand, “Then you’re-” 

“I’m your  **despair** ,” the doppelganger finished, “More precisely, I’m the version of you that you forgot. The you that the Future Foundation  _ made  _ you forget. The one that helped destroy the whole fucking world. Although I don’t seem to be quite as forgotten as the Future Foundation bastards wanted.” 

“How are you still here?” Fuyuhiko asked, trying not to show how scared he was, “They deleted your god-damned existence! How can I be talking to you right now?” 

“It’s as you said before,” the despair said, “This is, as you put it, ‘some really fucked-up dream.’ I don’t fucking exist anywhere outside of your mind.” 

“What about the others? Am I the only one seeing you? Me? Whatever?” 

“I have no fucking clue if those other bitches know,” the despair laughed, his single eye gleaming red, “As far as I know, we’re the only two who can talk like this.” 

“I don’t want that!” Fuyuhiko yelled, the ache in his eye starting to become agony, “I never wanted to remember you in the first place!” 

“Too bad, so fucking sad. I don’t even know if I can go away, not that I’d want to. I want our body back, so you can count on seeing me again. I’ll drag you back into despair, no matter what it takes to do it.” 

“Fuck off! This body is mine now, and there’s no way I’m letting you have it!” 

“Is it?” the despair grinned, “If you truly owned that body you wouldn’t have this.” He tapped his eyepatch knowingly, an infuriatingly smug look on his face. 

A brief moment of terror shot through Fuyuhiko. “S-so what?” he said, his voice trembling, “That doesn’t prove anything!” 

“When you wake up, I suggest you take a look,” the despair said, tugging at the string around his ear. It fell, taking the eyepatch with it. Before Fuyuhiko could see what was there, the broken world went black, and he woke up in a cold sweat. 

“Fucking hell,” he mumbled, rubbing his still-aching eye. It felt odd to sleep with the eyepatch on, but he hadn’t wanted to take any chances to see it before. Now, though… 

Fuyuhiko sighed, “Might as well get it over with.” He stretched, glancing at the clock on the wall. It was still two hours before sunrise; far too early to be awake in Fuyuhiko’s opinion. Pulling himself out of bed, he stumbled to the bathroom, pulling aside the screen door and stopping in front of the mirror. 

“You can do this,” he said to himself, “It’s only a fucking eyepatch, and you’re a yakuza. Don’t let a dumb piece of cloth get the better of you.” 

He took a deep breath and began tugging at the string tied around his head. Carefully slipping it over both ears, he felt it fall into his hands. Gathering his courage, he looked up at his reflection, to be met with… 

“What the…? NO!” 

... **Despair.**

Instead of a hole or a bloody mass, Fuyuhiko saw a cold, blue eye that was definitely not his staring back at him. His real eye - thankfully the same familiar tan - filled with horror at the sight. He scrambled to put the eyepatch in it’s now-justified place, wanting to never see that terrifying dead gaze again. It took a minute to get it on properly, his hands were shaking so much. 

He remembered what Makoto had told them: that some of the Remnants of Despair had replaced parts of their bodies with those of the Ultimate Despair to feel closer to them when they died, but Fuyuhiko never thought that he’d be one of those nutcases that did it. He’d seen Nagito’s hand for himself, but he thought the lucky student would be the only person insane enough to go through with it. The yakuza shivered, trying not to think about what that might mean for the others. 

This was all too much to handle. He needed to talk to someone. But everyone was probably asleep, so who could he talk to? 

Then it hit him. There was one person who always listened, no matter what he talked about. He had to talk to Peko. It didn’t matter if she was comatose, she was still Peko, and Peko always found a way to make him feel better. He quickly put on his suit and exited his cabin. Unlike the other survivors, Fuyuhiko didn’t regularly visit their sleeping friends, so it took him a moment to remember the route. 

Despite there being no change in temperature, Fuyuhiko felt a chill as he descended into the dark basement. He remembered waking up here, disoriented and full of panic. He had to wait, trapped in the pod, for what seemed like an eternity for anyone to notice him. He had and would never admit when he was scared, but that was probably one of the most terrifying experiences of his life. 

“Hey, Peko,” he said, awkwardly, “I’m sorry I haven’t been visiting you. I’ve had other stuff on my mind. And in my head.” He laughed at his poor attempt at a joke, “I just wanted to see you again. Maybe talk a little, I don’t know what about, though.” 

Fuyuhiko closed his eyes, imagining her smiling and reassuring him, taking his hand and telling him everything will be alright. 

“I know it’s stupid, but… I’m scared. Of myself. Or my despair, I don’t know what to call him. He said he would drag me back into despair, and I’m terrified of how he would do that. I must have done a lot of really fucked-up things back then, and I don’t want those memories back. I thought maybe coming here and talking to you might help with that, even if you can’t talk back to me.” 

He ran his eyes over Peko’s older body, noticing her long, silver hair no longer in braids but hanging free. She was definitely at least twenty centimeters taller than him now, not that it bothered him or anything. Her business-like attire was broken up by a cropped undershirt, making Fuyuhiko blush when he noticed it. She was the most beautiful girl - woman, he corrected himself - that he had ever seen. 

“I think I’m in love with you, Peko,” he said, “You sacrificed yourself to save me, and I never told you. You were never a tool to me, why couldn’t you understand that until it was too late? Now I might never be able to tell you.” 

Small drops of water landed on the glass separating the two yakuza. Fuyuhiko touched his face, startled. He hadn’t cried since… since it happened. He didn’t want to remember, but the horrible memory surfaced, inescapable. The evil bear, Monokuma, controlling Peko’s movements like she was a puppet, making her slice through hordes of mechanical soldiers, wearing her out. He had tried to save her, pushing through the crowd, but it wasn’t enough. Peko’s next strike accidentally cut through Fuyuhiko’s eye as well as a soldier in front of him. He must have blacked out from the pain, but the last thing he saw was Peko’s shocked face as her sword clattered to the ground. The next thing he knew, he was at the hospital, his eye was gone, and so was Peko. 

“I wish I could have saved you,” he cried, letting the tears flow freely for what was the first time in years, “Please come back to me, Peko.” 

He stayed by her side until the tears stopped. Checking his watch, he guessed that the others were probably still sleeping. It couldn’t hurt to stay a little longer. As quickly as he could, Fuyuhiko ran to the restaurant upstairs, grabbed the first edible thing he saw, and rushed back, being careful not to trip on the way down. He sat down, pretending they were eating breakfast together. After a while, he began telling her about his insecurities, things he never would say in front of anyone else. It was a relief, being this open, even if the one he was talking to couldn’t hear any of it. 

Eventually, he began to get tired of talking, so he just sat in silence by her side. He figured he could wait a while longer before the others wake up… 

“Oh, Fuyuhiko!” 

The yakuza jerked awake. He must have fallen asleep at some point while waiting. He turned to see Sonia on the last steps of the staircase. 

“I did not expect you to be down here,” she said, walking over and pulling out another chair, “May I join you?” 

“Yeah, sure,” Fuyuhiko responded, “I was just talkin’ to Peko.” 

“You do not have to feel embarrassed about it,” Sonia said, “I come to talk to Gundham on a regular basis.” 

Fuyuhiko sighed, before hesitantly asking, “Do you ever have flashbacks to when we were despairs?” 

Sonia stiffened, taken off-guard by his question. “Um…” she murmured, “Please don’t tell anyone, but I can sometimes hear voices. When I come down here, I can hear people talking, and I’m pretty sure one of those voices is mine.” 

“I see…” Fuyuhiko said, relieved, “So I’m not the only one.” 

“You hear them too?” Sonia cried. 

“Not exactly. I had a dream, or a vision, or something. He showed up and started talking to me. It was really fucking creepy, let me tell you.” 

“That sounds horrible. Do you think we should talk to the others about this?” 

“Probably. If I can work up the courage.” 

“Well, you just told me, so I don’t doubt that you can open up eventually.” 

Fuyuhiko let out a quiet laugh. “Yeah, I guess so,” he said. 

“Do you think we should head back upstairs?” the princess asked. 

“Probably,” the yakuza responded. He stood up and stretched; his body ached from sleeping in the chair. He looked over to where Peko was sleeping, “See you later, Pe- Peko?” 

As he glanced over, Fuyuhiko saw that Peko’s beautiful red eyes were open. “Peko! You’re awake!” 

“She is?” Sonia gasped, “Let me open her pod!” 

Sonia rushed over to the control panel to release Peko from her confinement. The moment the glass lifted, Fuyuhiko embraced Peko.

“I’m so glad to see you again, Peko,” Fuyuhiko whispered. 

“Young master?” Peko said, her voice hoarse from disuse, “Where are we?” 

“That’s a really long story,” Fuyuhiko admitted, “What do you remember?” 

“I…” Peko thought for a moment, “The last thing I remember is when we arrived at Hopes Peak. Why? What has happened?” 

“A lot, honestly,” he answered, “Let me help you up, we can talk over breakfast.” 

Fuyuhiko lifted Peko onto her feet, and Sonia came to help when she stumbled. Peko gave the princess a confused look, but said nothing. Fuyuhiko smiled at her, nodding to reassure her. The smile wouldn’t leave his face; since she woke up, there was a strong possibility that the others would as well. He couldn’t help being optimistic. 

After all, he had  **hope** . 


	6. Explanations

The other survivors were elated to see Peko again, even if she didn’t remember them. They gave her as brief of an explanation as they could about the Neo World Program, which she took surprisingly well. As Kazuichi was finishing his explanation of what happened after the funhouse, Hajime pulled Fuyuhiko aside. 

“Do you think we should tell her about… you know,” he said. 

Fuyuhiko thought for a moment before saying, “I think she deserves to know.” 

“Okay. Do you want to tell her, or should I?” 

“I can do it when we finish explaining the killing game.” 

They returned to the group as Akane began ranting about Nagito. Hajime managed to get her to calm down, and he gave a brief overview of the case. When he finished, he paused, looking somewhat confused. 

“What’s wrong, dude?” Kazuichi asked. 

“It’s just…” Hajime tried to explain, “I can’t remember how we ended the simulation. Everything after Chiaki’s… sacrifice is a blur.” 

“Now that you mention it,” Akane said, “I’m not exactly sure how we did it either.” 

“I also cannot remember parts of that trial,” Sonia said. 

“Weird, neither can I,” Fuyuhiko grimaced. 

“It is fine if you do not remember,” Peko said, “But I am curious about one thing. You said the simulation lasted roughly a month, correct? If that is the case, then why do I look so much older than I remember?” 

“That’s… a little more complicated,” Kazuichi said. 

“I can explain,” Fuyuhiko said, “Don’t worry, guys, she can take it.” 

The others looked hesitant, but allowed him to continue. 

“We all have about two years worth of memories missing,” Fuyuhiko explained, “While we were at Hopes Peak, we were all brainwashed and forced us to do fucking terrible things. The Future Foundation couldn’t easily undo what happened to us, so they just removed the memories we have of that time.” 

“If they removed our memories, why not only get rid of the ones where we were doing those terrible things?” Peko asked, “Why did they remove our school memories as well?” 

“That…” Fuyuhiko began, “Fuck, I’m not actually sure.” 

“Neither am I,” Hajime said, “But I do have a theory. I think the person who brainwashed us might have been another student at the school, and we might have gotten close to them while we were there.” 

“Really?” Akane scoffed, “Why would we ever become friends with someone who wants to destroy the world?” 

“Destroy the world?” Peko interrupted. 

The room went quiet. “Yeah,” Fuyuhiko eventually said, “We helped destroy the world.” 

“That sounds impossible,” Peko whispered, “If it were anyone other than you telling me this, I would not believe it.” 

“I get that,” Fuyuhiko said, “I didn’t want to believe it either when I heard it. But yeah, most of the world’s fucking broken, and we helped to do it.” 

"This is... a lot to take in," Peko said, "Could I have some time to talk with you, young master? Alone?" 

"Of course, let me show you your room," Fuyuhiko helped his friend up and guided her to the door, making sure she didn't fall. 

Once the two yakuza were gone, Sonia spoke up. "If I may," she started, "There is something I would like to discuss with everyone." 

"Go for it, Miss Sonia," Kazuichi encouraged. 

"I am concerned that our memories may not be completely gone," she explained, "I have been hearing voices, and Fuyuhiko told me that he had an incredibly realistic nightmare about our despair. Have any of you been having these flashbacks?" 

"Huh," Akane hummed, "I keep thinking I smell blood; that might explain it." 

"I'm smelling smoke," Kazuichi confessed, "And something else I can't quite put my finger on. Sulfur, maybe?"

"I've heard things too," Hajime said, "And I've been able to do things that I certainly couldn't before this." 

"As worried as I am about our situation, I must say I am relieved that Fuyuhiko and I are not the only ones experiencing this," Sonia said, "However, I worry about the others having these... hallucinations when they wake up." 

"I can't deny that possibility," Hajime pondered, "We should probably keep a close eye on them just in case." 

"That's probably a good idea," Kazuichi agreed, "I want to trust them, but after this, I just don't know if I can." 

"Anyway, do you think we should talk to the Future Foundation about this?" Sonia said. 

"I'm not sure that's a great idea," Hajime said, "I overheard Makoto and the others talking, and it sounds like the rest of the Foundation still thinks we're evil. If we're going to tell someone, it'll have to be one of those three." 

"Wait, so we're back to not trusting the Foundation?" Kazuichi sighed, annoyed, "Dammit, I thought we could finally have some time without anyone hating us." 

"Why does the Foundation think we're bad?" Akane asked, "Surely Big Mac and the other two explained what they were doing." 

"I think they did, but from what I heard, the rest of the Foundation didn't agree to their plan," Hajime recounted, "There might be a few people we could trust, but as far as we know, our only Foundation allies are Makoto, Kyoko, and Byakuya." 

"Man, it's still weird having to think of skinny Byakuya," Akane said. 

"Right, the Impostor," Sonia said, frowning, "It feels rude to call him an impostor, even if that's what he is. Wait, is he even a 'he'?" 

"I guess we could ask what they want to be called when they wake up," Hajime said, "Anyway, should we tell them what's been going on?" 

"Probably for the best," Kazuichi said, stretching. 

"Let us roll out!" Sonia said, standing and pointing dramatically. 

"Yeah, come on guys!" Akane yelled, "I'll race ya to the HQ!" 

"You're on!" both Kazuichi and Sonia said, the former smiling at the coincidence. 

Hajime grinned, watching the three of them dash out of the restaurant and down the stairs. Despite his concerns, their lives still seemed relatively normal, or at least as normal as it could be with how eccentric his friends could be. He ran after his friends, yelling at them to wait for him, and tried to ignore the nagging feeling he had that something wasn't quite right. He didn't want to believe it, but he felt that something was going to go wrong. 


	7. Suggestions

Makoto scrolled through his emails, a less-than-happy look on his face. Kyoko could guess what was on the screen; the three of them have been getting increasingly threatening messages from the Future Foundation to let the Remnants of Despair be killed. None of them were going to allow that, especially considering that they were far from evil, but the emails wouldn't stop. She suspected that even if they were informed of their reformation, they would still be ordered dead on sight. 

"Anything useful?" Kyoko asked, "Or is it just more threats?" 

"Oh, hi Kyoko," Makoto said, "Hina did send me an email saying she and Hiro could help us out on the island, but all the others are from the higher-ups." 

"Perhaps you should take Hina up on her offer," Kyoko suggested, "Those two might be able to watch them while we sort things out with the foundation." 

"I was planning on asking her to come anyway," Makoto admitted, "We haven't seen them for a while, and they'd probably be a lot more comfortable to be around than Byakuya." 

"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that," Byakuya said from across the room. 

"Sorry, but it's true," Makoto called back. 

They were interrupted by voices on the other side of the door. Someone knocked a few times, and Kyoko opened the door to see the former Remnants, minus Fuyuhiko. "Good morning," Sonia said diplomatically, "May we speak to you?" 

"Of course," Makoto said, rising, "Come on in." 

Their four charges filed into the room, all looking various degrees of nervous. "I'll cut to the chase," Hajime said, "We're concerned that our memories from our time as Despairs might not be completely gone." 

"What?" Byakuya started, looking uncharacteristically flustered, "How is that possible?" 

"We're not sure ourselves," Hajime admitted, "But Sonia and I have been hearing things, and Akane and Kazuichi have been smelling blood and... what was it again?" 

"Smoke and something sulfur-like," Kazuichi provided. 

"That," Hajime continued, "And Sonia told me that Fuyuhiko has been having nightmares. We can't think of any other explanation for that other than our memories resurfacing." 

"That shouldn't be happening," Kyoko pondered, "Those memories were completely erased, or so we thought. Have you been having any other issues regarding memory?" 

"Actually," Sonia interjected, "None of us can fully remember how we ended the program. We remember hearing about who we were, you three coming to get us, and ending the program. Everything else seems to have a fog hanging over it, preventing us from seeing further." 

"That might be because of the program glitching out," Makoto guessed, "The virus could have caused a slight memory error, and that might have even brought back some of the deleted memories." 

Kyoko quickly walked back to the computer and began typing rapidly. Soon, a small, feminine figure appeared on the screen, saying, "Hello, Kyoko! Do you need anything?" 

"Check the memory data for the Neo World Program," Kyoko said, typing as she spoke, "We think there might have been an error." 

The figure disappeared for a few moments before reappearing. "There was a small glitch that I've been investigating," it said, "Given all available data, it must be the error you're talking about. I'm sorry I couldn't figure it out sooner." 

"That's alright," Kyoko reassured it, "You've had a lot to do, so I can't blame you for leaving that until later." 

"What is that?" Kazuichi asked, enthralled by the being on the screen. 

"That's Alter Ego," Makoto explained, "They were created by a friend of ours, and they were in charge of the Neo World Program. Now they're trying to rebuild it." 

"That's so cool!" the mechanic exclaimed, leaning in to try to get a closer look. 

"I'm no computer nerd, but even I have to admit that's pretty neat," Akane said. 

"Being in charge of an entire virtual world sounds taxing," Sonia commented, "Maybe we could chat sometime?" 

"Um, pardon me," Alter Ego began, "But one of the pods is offline. Do you know anything about that?" 

"What?" Makoto yelled, alarmed, "We need to go check on them-" 

"You don't have do worry," Hajime interrupted, "Peko woke up and we let her out. Fuyuhiko's talking with her right now." 

"Really?" Makoto said, relieved, "That's great! That means the others might wake up too!" 

"I hate to ruin the mood, but this isn't as great as you think," Byakuya said, "More people awake means a greater perceived threat to the Foundation, and greater trouble we'll be in for keeping them alive." 

"Oh..." Makoto sounded disappointed, "I guess you're right. I wish this job didn't come with so many complications..." 

"If I may," Sonia said, "Does anyone else in the Foundation know about us?" 

Byakuya let out a humorless laugh. "I'd be surprised if anyone didn't know about you," he quipped, "Although most believe you to be in captivity and demand your execution." Everyone flinched at that word. Their experience in the killing game had made them associate executions with the horribly brutal deaths of their friends. "Apologies," Byakuya continued, "but that is what they want. Only the branch leaders and other higher-ups know that you're here, and, to my knowledge, only three of our companions view you in a positive light." 

"I see," Sonia considered, "That is unfortunate." 

"Would it be too implausible to say we were already dead?" Hajime proposed, "While we would still need people to send us daily necessities as needed, they don't necessarily need to be sent by Foundation people. If there is anyone you could trust with us, they might able to help. You three could get back to your regular jobs and not have to worry so much about us." 

"That's not a bad idea," Kyoko said, "If the Foundation believes that there is no threat anymore, you won't be in as much danger. Although you would not be able to leave this island." 

"We wouldn't be able to leave anyway," Hajime continued, his voice becoming slightly monotone as he explained, "If we could manufacture evidence of our demise, there would be no need for them to search the island, and we could spend a few years in relative peace. Perhaps we could even destroy evidence of our identities and return to the mainland once the world has forgotten about us." 

"But how would we do that?" Makoto asked. 

"I might be able to help with that," Byakuya said, "I know a lot of people, and I might be able to arrange something with them." 

"That sounds like a fab idea!" Sonia exclaimed, "Although it might be hard to remove us from public knowledge, especially considering our friends and family." 

An uncomfortable silence hung over the room at Sonia's comment. None of the Foundation members had wanted to bring up this topic so soon, but it looked like they wouldn't have a choice. "I'm sorry," Kyoko finally broke the silence, "But your families are dead." 

The silence returned. 

"...Dead?" Akane eventually said, her voice much quieter than normal. 

"Yeah," Makoto admitted, "We weren't sure when to tell you. I'm sorry." 

"I had a feeling that was the case," Sonia murmured. 

"Guys..." Kazuichi said, his voice trembling. 

"Let's go," Hajime recommended, putting his arm around his friend's shoulders. 

Makoto watched the four of them leave the room, feeling terrible. He shared a glance with Kyoko, and silently agreed that they needed to do something for them to make them feel better once they were done grieving. He opened a new email and started typing. 


	8. Grief

It shouldn't have been that big of a surprise. Of course the best way to bring people despair was killing their loved ones. Kazuichi just didn't want to accept it. Hearing it said out loud, though... Now he had no choice. He really didn't want the others to see him cry, so he pulled his had over his eyes as Hajime guided him back to the restaurant. 

"Oh, you're back," Fuyuhiko said as they entered, "What were you doing?" 

"We were talking to Makoto and the others," Hajime explained. 

"Huh," Fuyuhiko said, glancing at their somber expressions, "Did it not go well?" 

"It went fine," Sonia said, though her voice shook as she spoke. 

Fuyuhiko and Peko raised an eyebrow in unison. 

"It's just..." Hajime started, "We found out our families are dead." 

Peko put a comforting hand on her master's shoulder as he let out a sigh. "I figured," he eventually said. 

"You figured?" Akane yelled, "How can you be so calm about this? They're dead, for god's sake!" 

"I..." the yakuza hesitated, clearly not wanting to tell them something. 

"I need to tell you something," Kazuichi broke the silence, "When Kyoko told us that... I had a flashback. To... you know." 

Fuyuhiko's head jerked up in surprise. "...You want to talk about it?" he asked, sounding oddly sympathetic. 

"Yeah, I think I do," Kazuichi admitted, "I think this was from before I fully defected. I had been struggling for a few days without sleep, and I got to my parent's bike shop." 

"Oh no..." Akane gasped, "Did you see, like, your parent's corpses inside?" 

"No," Kazuichi continued, "But I did collapse there. When I woke up, my dad was standing over me, and..." he shuddered, unsure if he could finish the story. 

_"Kazuichi!" his dad yelled, "I thought you were dead!"_

_The young mechanic scrambled backwards, terrified, though he wasn't sure why. His hand bumped against a screwdriver, and his fingers instinctively curled around the tool's handle._

_"Did you lose your fucking voice?" his dad asked, "Talk, boy!"_

_"I-I-I..." Kazuichi stuttered._

_"Speak up!" his dad demanded, walking forward and reaching his hand toward his son._

_"DON'T TOUCH ME!" Kazuichi screamed. His hand surged forward and before he knew what he was doing, the screwdriver was buried up to the handle in his father's chest. They both screamed, one in pain, one in shock, though the latter somehow morphed into twisted laughter. He was horrified at what he had done, but the feeling of revenge for years of beatings was so good, he couldn't stop laughing. "How does it feel, pops?" he crowed, "You're finally getting a taste of your own medicine!"_

_"You little bastard..." his dad coughed, his hands curled into fists, "Just wait until I get my hands on you-"_

_He was interrupted by Kazuichi's boot hitting him roughly in the stomach. "I'm sick of your shit!" Kazuichi yelled, pounding his fists into his father's face, "She's treated me better than you ever have! If I have to sacrifice you in the name of despair, I'll gladly do it!" Blood poured down his face, staining his hands red, red, RED-_

"Kazuichi!" 

He snapped out of the memory, Hajime staring him in the face. "Are you okay?" his friend asked, "You started shaking." 

"I-I'm alright," he lied, "I don't... want to say anymore." 

"You do not have to," Sonia reassured him, "We've all done some really terrible things, so you're not alone in feeling terrible." 

"Still," Kazuichi mumbled, "It's not fair. Why did it have to be me? Why am I the only one who remembered something?" 

"You aren't." 

Everyone turned to look at Fuyuhiko, surprised at his comment. "What?" he said, "I've remembered some things too." 

"Then why didn't you say something?" Akane asked. 

"I didn't fucking want to," Fuyuhiko retorted, "That shit's fucked up, and I didn't want you guys to know." 

"Hey, I confessed part of what I did, so you should too," Kazuichi said. 

Fuyuhiko groaned, "Fine," and flipped up his eyepatch, revealing a cold blue eye underneath. 

"So you got two different colored eyes like Hajime?" Akane asked, confused about why he would hide that. 

"Not exactly," Fuyuhiko said, his tan eye glancing at Peko by his side. The blue eye didn't follow his gaze, instead just staring blankly ahead. 

Oh. 

"That's disgusting!" Kazuichi yelped, the first to catch on. 

"Oh god, is that the Ultimate Despair's eye?" Hajime asked, failing to keep the revulsion out of his voice. 

"Yeah," Fuyuhiko grumbled, trying to ignore Sonia and Akane recoiling in horror, "I'm one of the sick fucks who got rid of their body parts. If I could, I'd tear it out of my skull right now." 

"I thought Nagito was bad, but this is something else," Hajime said, leaning in to get a closer look. 

"Keep rubbing it in," Fuyuhiko said, "I'm disgusting, I know it." 

"Young master, you are not disgusting," Peko spoke up, "You are not the same person you were when you did that." 

"...Thanks, Peko," Fuyuhiko said, flushing slightly. 

"I have an idea," Sonia declared, slamming her hand on the table for emphasis, "Since we are all at least a little screwed up from our time in despair, we should make an emotional support group for those who remember what happened during the tragedy! Everyone should feel okay talking about it in a space where they will not be judged, and we should help them feel better about what they did. It will be lit!" 

"That's an excellent idea!" Kazuichi encouraged, "As expected of the brilliant Miss Sonia." 

"I agree," Akane said, "Bic Mac and the others are gonna be leaving eventually, so we'll need to support each other when that time comes." 

"I guess that sounds good," Fuyuhiko grinned. 

"I don't know how much help I will be, but I'll do what I can," Peko said. 

"When do we start?" Hajime asked. 

"I think we should meet for this once a week, perhaps in the pod room so we can be with our friends," Sonia decided, "We should start sooner rather than later, so tonight would probably work well for a first meeting. Or do you think we should start tomorrow?" 

"I think tonight would be good," Hajime said, looking to the others for approval. They nodded, pleased that they were making progress on something. 

"Then it's decided!" Sonia declared, "Tonight we will meet with our sleeping friends and support each other." 

"We should also figure out how things will be run on the island," Hajime suggested, "Since we're going to be here for a long time, we should decide who will take charge and how we will manage the island." 

"Great!" Akane said, "Let's go get everything set up!" 

The gymnast ran back to the facility with everyone else following behind at a slower pace. They ended up going back and forth a few times to bring more chairs in, and they managed to drag a bed into the room so someone could stay overnight in case one of their friends woke up. They didn't want a repeat of what happened with Fuyuhiko. After finishing the setup, they decided not to wait to have the meeting. Although not all of them were completely open, they discussed a lot, and by the time they were done, it felt like their demons had less of a hold on them. They departed shortly before sunset, and spent the rest of the day in high spirits. 

Fuyuhiko should've known it wouldn't last. 


	9. Vengeance

He was back on the bridge. Smoke curled into the sky as the city below him crumbled. Fuyuhiko sighed, "And here I thought I would get some decent sleep. The fuck do you want?" 

He heard a slow clap coming from behind him. "I didn't expect you to show them the eye," Despair said, "You've got more balls than I thought. Even though you didn't tell them about me, so, thanks for that." 

"Cut to the chase," Fuyuhiko hissed, "Why are you here?" 

"Same as last night," Despair answered, "I want you back in despair so I can take over. Now, what should I show you this time? Us causing despair, your friends causing despair, school memories, downtime during despair-"

"Wait, school memories?" Fuyuhiko interrupted, "You can show me those?" 

"I guess I could," Despair admitted, "But why the fuck would I want to? Those are boring as shit." He stared at his counterpart for a moment before seemingly taking pity on him and saying, "Fine, but just this once." 

"Really?" Fuyuhiko had to stop himself from thanking him, "And here I thought you were irredeemable." 

"Neither of us deserve redemption," Despair said as the world around them blurred and shifted. 

They found themselves in a classroom. The sky was a bright blue, and a ginger-haired woman who he assumed was their teacher was at the front of the room talking to the class. Fuyuhiko quickly found a younger version of himself sitting on the far side of the room, feet resting on the desk, both eyes thankfully in their sockets. 

Fuyuhiko suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder, making him flinch. "That's Chisa," Despair pointed to the cheerful ginger, almost speaking directly into his ear, "We were allowed to skip class as much as we wanted until she took over, but we didn't usually skip anyway. Although she actually made school pretty fucking interesting. I like her." 

While that was interesting, Fuyuhiko didn't know why Despair was telling him this. He scanned the rest of the classroom, making note of four empty seats, and noticed someone that seemed out of place. "Is that..." he murmured, pointing to a lavender-haired girl in the back. 

"That's Chiaki," Despair said, "Why? What's so interesting about her?" 

"I thought she was just a part of the Neo World Program," Fuyuhiko said, "She's real?" 

"Oh yeah, she was," Despair sighed, "Don't ask if you can see her. She's dead." 

"Oh." 

They watched the class unfold for a few minutes. Despair was clearly bored with the memory, but Fuyuhiko was enjoying how calm everything was. With everything that had happened to him, it was good to see him and his friends doing something relatively normal. Suddenly, the phone rang, and Chisa went to answer it. 

"Hello, Chisa speaking," she said, "What? Oh dear. Okay, I'll send him over," she put the phone down, "Fuyuhiko, the principal would like to speak with you." 

"Uh, okay," the younger Fuyuhiko said, "Did he say why?" 

Chisa gave him a sad look, saying, "I think it would be better for him to explain." 

"What's going on?" Fuyuhiko asked as they stepped out of the classroom. 

"You'll see," Despair said, grinning. 

Now very worried, Fuyuhiko reluctantly followed the younger version of himself down the hallway. He could tell that his younger self was nervous, but only because he knew himself so well. Not many people would be able to recognize the tension in his shoulders and the way he evaluated his surroundings, looking for any possible threats. He eventually arrived in the principal's office, knocking twice before the door opened. There were several people inside, and none of them looked happy. 

"You wanted to see me sir?" young Fuyuhiko asked, hesitantly stepping in. 

"Yes, thank you for coming," the one he assumed was the principal said, "We have received some unfortunate news from the Reserve Course that I thought you should be aware of." 

Fuyuhiko suddenly realized what this was about. He remembered that stupid game Monokuma had set up, _Twilight Syndrome Murder Case_ , and the photos he had gotten as a prize for beating it. "No," he said, "This is the memory you're showing me? I don't want to see this, you fucking bastard!" 

"Well fuck you too," Despair said, "I'm in control here, and you're going to feel some fucking despair whether you like it or not." 

The principal looked up, sympathy in his eyes, "Your sister has been murdered." 

Both Fuyuhiko and the younger version of himself flinched. "What?" the young yakuza yelled, "Is this some shitty, twisted joke? Where's the proof?" 

The pity in the principal's face was unmistakable. "We'll drive you to the morgue," he said. 

"Peko..." the younger Fuyuhiko murmured, "Peko should come with me. She's... a close friend of the family, and she'd want to know." 

"We'll let her know," the principal said, signaling one of the other men and leading the yakuza out of the office. Despair placed his finger in the middle of Fuyuhiko's back and pushed him down the hall. A younger Peko joined them as they passed their classroom. She glanced at her master, wondering if he had something to say to her, but he subtly shook his head. To his surprise, they also ran into Ibuki, Mikan, Hiyoko, Mahiru, and a black-haired girl he didn't recognize along the way. 

"Baby Gangstaaaaa!" Ibuki wailed, throwing her arms around him in a hug, "Ibuki's so sorry for you!" 

"What the fuck?" the young yakuza said, unused to the musician's affectionate assaults. 

"W-w-we were- we f-found..." Mikan stuttered, "I'm s-sorry! Please forgive m-me!" 

"Were you the one who fucking killed her?" he yelled, throwing Ibuki off him. Peko reflexively started to unsheathe her sword, and the black-haired girl flinched almost imperceptively. 

"No, but we did find the body," Mahiru said, "We're really sorry for your loss." 

"If you're really so sorry, then get the fuck out of my way." 

"Wow, did your sister dying make you even more rude?" Hiyoko commented, grinning mischievously. 

"Hiyoko!" Mahiru scolded, noticing the murderous look on Fuyuhiko's face, "Now is not the time." 

The group of girls finished saying their condolences and walked away, and Fuyuhiko couldn't help noticing the black-haired girl hadn't said anything. She hadn't looked sad at all - if anything she looked nervous. He suddenly realized that the girl - Sato, he remembered - looked an awful lot like the girl in one of the pictures he was given. The one that he had supposedly killed. 

Despair noticed Fuyuhiko's glare and grinned, "Recognize her?" 

"Is she the one?" Fuyuhiko demanded. 

"Yep. We'll get to her later." 

When they exited the school and stopped in front of a fancy car, Fuyuhiko asked, "So do we get in the car?" 

"Nah," Despair shook his head, "I'll just fast-forward a bit." He raised his hand, and the world blurred once more until they saw the younger Fuyuhiko alone in the morgue, standing over the dead body of his sister. If it weren't for the large wound on her head, she almost looked like she could have been sleeping. 

"Natsumi..." the younger Fuyuhiko murmured. He carefully wrapped her body in the blanket under her, wiping his eyes on his sleeve when he was done. "I'll avenge you," he whispered, "I'll kill the bitch that did this to you." 

The memory froze. "You don't remember her, do you?" Despair asked, "Ultimate Despair." 

"No, I don't," Fuyuhiko answered, "I don't really care to either. Why?" 

"Just know that she gave us the info we needed to get some fucking revenge," Despair said, "Since you're acting so ungrateful, I won't show you who she is. You don't deserve that knowledge," he laughed at his double's incredulous look, "The frustration of not knowing who's responsible for the tragedy; doesn't it feel like despair?" 

"Shut up," Fuyuhiko growled. 

"Yeah, you're definitely feeling it," Despair smirked, "Let's go straight to the killing, then." 

Fuyuhiko wasn't willing to admit it, but he was almost looking forward to this part. The scene shifted once again, and they found the younger Fuyuhiko running down a hallway after Sato with a metal bat strapped to his back. He wore gloves, likely to avoid leaving fingerprints behind if the worst happened. 

"Stop running, you little bitch!" younger Fuyuhiko yelled, "I have to ask you some fucking questions!" 

"Get away from me!" Sato shrieked, "I don't know anything!" 

"You found the body, right?" Fuyuhiko shouted, "You have to know something. Just tell me and I'll stop chasing you!" 

"I wasn't the only one!" Sato wailed, "Why don't you ask the others? I'm sure the Ultimates would have better info than a lowly Reserve Course student like me!" 

"I have! You're the only one left to ask!" 

It was then that Sato's luck ran out. The hallway she had turned into was a dead end. She pressed herself into the wall, unable to escape as the yakuza approached her. "I didn't do anything!" she said, panicked, "It was that pervert who killed her! He's the one who clubbed her and broke the vase!" 

"The vase?" Fuyuhiko clarified, "There wasn't a vase at the crime scene." 

Sato gasped; she had been caught. "So it was you," Fuyuhiko growled, drawing the bat, "It's time for revenge, fucker." 

"W-wait!" Sato cried, her legs giving out, making her slide down the wall, "Please don't kill me!" 

"You know how the yakuza operates," Fuyuhiko said, "An eye for an eye. You shouldn't have killed my sister if you weren't prepared to face the consequences!" He swung, the bat connecting with her head. She didn't have any time to scream; her body slumped against the wall, blood dripping from her head and the bat. Fuyuhiko threw the bat aside, panting, removed his bloodstained coat and gloves, and hurried to leave the scene. When he was a good distance away, Fuyuhiko took out his phone and dialed a number. When whoever was on the other side answered, he said, "It's done. Are my exits clear? Good. I'll meet you there," and continued running. 

The memory quickly faded after that, and they returned to the bridge. "Satisfied?" Despair asked. 

"Kind of," Fuyuhiko admitted, "I won't deny that it felt good to see us get revenge, and now I finally have some closure for that. It would've been nicer not to see that at all, though." 

"Hey, I did you a fucking favor," Despair said, "You said it yourself, you have closure now. Actually, could you do something for me in return?" 

Fuyuhiko groaned, knowing that whatever he wanted wouldn't be any good. 

"Don't give me that look," Despair said, not sounding as angry as Fuyuhiko thought he would, "I'm not going to have you jump off a roof or some shit like that." 

"Fine, what is it?" Fuyuhiko groaned. 

"Next time you see your friend Hajime, tell him the name 'Izuru Kamakura'. That's it." 

"That's it? No tricks? No death threats?" 

"Nope, just the name." 

"Huh," Fuyuhiko considered, "Alright then. I'll do it." 

"Great," Despair said, "Then I think it's time for you to wake up. Hope to see you tomorrow." 

"Hope to see you never," Fuyuhiko quipped back. The last thing he heard before waking was his double's distorted laughter. 


	10. Forte

Hajime had not been sleeping well lately. If he could get to sleep at all, it was usually after two or three hours of failing to get comfortable. Fortunately, when he did sleep, he wasn't experiencing any nightmares; though he would often hear strange, familiar voices, and he could never remember what they were saying. Today he lay in bed, too exhausted to get up, wishing that he might have more time to sleep. He closed his eyes, intending to rest for a while longer. 

_Sleep can wait._

"Huh?" Hajime said, sitting up slightly, "Who's there?" 

_Get to the pod room. Someone's waking up soon._

"Wait, who are you?" Hajime demanded, "Who's waking up?" 

_Just go._

Whoever this was seemed extremely confident in their prediction, so Hajime semi-reluctantly got out of bed, quickly got dressed, and hurried to find out who was waking up. He rushed past the dining table where most of his friends were already present, only giving a brief 'good morning' as he ran by. When he arrived at his destination, he began circling the pods, wondering who it was that would be joining them. 

"Hey, mysterious voice?" he asked, "Care to answer my earlier question? Who is it that's waking up?" 

The voice was unhelpfully silent. 

"Fine then," Hajime grumbled, "Be like that. I'll figure it out myself." 

"Hajime, are you alright?" 

He turned to see Sonia and Kazuichi following him into the room. "You came down in such a rush," Sonia said, "Is everything okay?" 

"Someone's waking up soon," Hajime told them, "I'm trying to figure out who in advance." 

"Woah, really?" Kazuichi gasped, "Let's check them all!" 

The three of them circled the pods, checking each of them for any movement. Impostor, Nagito, empty, empty, empty, Mikan, Gundham, empty, Nekomaru, Ibuki- 

"Ibuki!" Hajime called, "It's Ibuki! Help me get her out." 

Hajime opened the pod containing the Ultimate Musician, and Sonia and Kazuichi helped her get out and stand up. Ibuki seemed groggy; she didn't quite register the other's presence. "Nooo..." she mumbled, her voice hoarse, "Five more minutes..." 

"Sorry, but you have to get up now," Kazuichi said. 

"Throat hurts," Ibuki coughed. 

"We'll get you some water," Sonia reassured her, "Or would you prefer tea?"

"Water's fine..." 

The three of the managed to get Ibuki up into the dining room, where Akane was seated. "So that's why you were in such a rush," she said, "Nice to have another face around here!" 

"Where did Peko go?" Sonia asked. 

"She went to check on Fuyuhiko," Akane explained, "He's probably just sleeping in, though." 

"Probably," Hajime said, filling a glass of water and setting it down in front of Ibuki. The musician grabbed it and chugged over half the glass in one breath. 

"We should explain our situation to Ibuki," Sonia interrupted, "She's probably at least a little confused." 

"Right, yes," Hajime said, turning to the musician, "What do you re-" He was cut off as Ibuki put up a finger and shakily stood up. 

"Yeah, explanations would be fun," Ibuki said, "But Ibuki's gotta do one thing first," she took a deep breath and screamed, "YAAAAAA-HOOOOO! I-bu-ki! Mi-o-da! Ibuki Mioda's in the house!" She struck a pose, "Alright, introductions are a go! Your turn!" 

"Uh," Hajime stuttered, memories of her enthusiasm suddenly returning, "I'm Haji-"

"Beep!" Ibuki interrupted, "You gotta put more energy into it! Come on, shout with me!" 

"I'm Hajime Hinata!" he said loudly. 

"Sonia Nevermind is also in the house!" Sonia cheered. 

"Yo, I'm Kazuichi Soda!" 

"Akane Owari is ready for action!" 

"Woo!" Ibuki yelled after chugging the rest of her drink, "Ibuki can feel the good vibes from all of you. So, what's happening? Why are we all here?" 

"What's the last thing you remember?" Hajime asked. 

"Ibuki was strutting into Hopes Peak as the Ultimate Musician!" she answered, "Then Ibuki got really dizzy and woke up here!" 

"Okay then," Hajime said, "Let's start with Hopes Peak." 

"We were also students of that school," Sonia said. 

"No way!" Ibuki gasped, "What class were you in?" 

"Class 77-B," Akane said, slightly muffled due to the food in her mouth. 

"Woah, same! Wait, then why do you look older than me?" 

"Well," Hajime began. 

The door suddenly slammed open, and Peko hurried in. "I need your help," she said, "Come with me." 

"What happened?" Hajime asked. 

"Fuyuhiko took the eye out," Peko explained, "By himself. With a knife." 


	11. Questioning

"He _what?!_ " Hajime yelled.

"I don't know what happened exactly," Peko said, "But when I got to his cabin, I found him collapsed with a knife in his hand and the eye gone." 

"Why the hell would he do that?" Kazuichi asked. 

"I don't know!" Peko cried, "He's been acting strange for a while, and I can't figure out why!" 

"Wait, what's going on?" Ibuki asked, visibly confused. 

"We'll explain later," Sonia said, "Right now, Fuyuhiko needs help." 

"Akane, run to the hospital on third island and grab us some medical supplies," Hajime directed, "Meet us at Fuyuhiko's cabin." 

"Right away!" Akane saluted and rushed out of the dining room. She wasn't sure what type of medical stuff they need, but she could probably just grab a first-aid kit, right? As she ran through the center island, she almost collided with Kyoko. 

"Woah, sorry about that," Akane apologized, skidding to a halt. 

"What's going on?" Kyoko asked, taking note of the gymnast's urgent energy. 

"I don't have time to explain," Akane said, "But we need a first-aid kit." 

"You won't find any at the hospital," Kyoko said, "The Future Foundation took everything to aid in the country's recovery. We do have some at our headquarters, though; I'll show you where they are." 

"Great!" Akane followed Kyoko to the second island and into their temporary HQ. The detective told Akane to wait by the door, to which she reluctantly obliged. It was difficult being patient, especially with a crisis on their hands, but Kyoko thankfully only took a minute to get what they needed. 

As the two of them ran to the cabins, Kyoko pulled out her phone and called Makoto. "Hey, Makoto," she said, "We have a situation. Meet us at the Remnant's cabins as soon as you can." She hung up and continued running. When they reached their destination they found everyone but Hajime and Peko waiting outside Fuyuhiko's door. 

"What happened?" Kyoko asked. 

"You know about Fuyuhiko's eye, correct?" Sonia clarified. When Kyoko nodded, she continued, "He cut it out."

"Why would he do that?" the detective questioned. 

"We've got no idea," Kazuichi groaned, "Hajime and Peko are trying to get an answer." 

Kyoko nodded and took the first-aid kit before entering the cabin, finding Fuyuhiko sitting on the edge of his bed while Hajime examined his empty socket. 

"Oh, good, you're back," Hajime said, "It doesn't look too bad, but we'll still have to clean it. If only Mikan were here..." 

"I should be able to help," Kyoko said, kneeling next to him, "Explain." 

"What do you want me to say?" Fuyuhiko griped, "I was sick of that rotten eye in my face and wanted to get rid of it. The end." 

"Is that the only reason?"

"I've been concerned about you for a while, young master," Peko interjected, "You have been acting distracted for quite some time." 

Fuyuhiko hesitated before sighing, "It's... complicated." 

"Does it have anything to do with the nightmares you've been having?" Hajime theorized. 

"You could say that," Fuyuhiko said. 

"Tell us about them," Kyoko suggested. 

"Do I have to?" Fuyuhiko groaned, "This is so fucking stupid." 

"How about we clean your eye out and then you tell us?" Hajime said. 

"Fine, but I still think this is bullshit." 

Hajime went about cleaning the socket with some direction from Kyoko. He mentally added another thing to the list of things he could do that he had never done before. "Where did you put the eye?" he asked. 

"In the trash." 

Kyoko dug through the trash can, thankful for her gloves, and found the bloody eye. She placed it in a plastic bag to examine later. 

After a few minutes, Hajime handed Fuyuhiko his eyepatch, which he gratefully put back on. "Are you ready to talk about it?" Hajime asked. 

"Yeah," Fuyuhiko sighed, motioning for Peko to sit next to him, "Before we start, can I ask both of you a question?" 

"Of course," Kyoko said. 

"Who's Izuru Kamakura?" 


	12. Confession

_"Who's Izuru Kamakura?"_

Hajime and Kyoko froze. "How do you know about him?" Kyoko demanded. 

"I heard his name in my... dream last night," Fuyuhiko explained, "No fucking clue who he is, but I know he must be important." 

"You could say that," Kyoko said. 

"Why does that name sound so familiar?" Hajime wondered. 

"I honestly don't know if I can tell you," Kyoko said, "The information is directly related to you, but it's also highly classified. You found out in the Neo World Program, but it was while the simulation was glitching out. You must have forgotten." 

"Damn," Fuyuhiko sighed, "And here I was hoping it would be easy for once." 

"A-anyway," Hajime said, "Do you want to tell us about your dreams?" 

"Sure," Fuyuhiko said, "Can you get everyone else in here? They should probably know what's going on. You said Ibuki's awake, right? Make sure she's caught up on the whole despair shit." 

Kyoko opened the door and waved everyone else in. They shuffled in hesitantly, unsure of what was going on. 

"Hey..." Fuyuhiko started, "So, I haven't been entirely honest with you. I've told you that I've been having nightmares, right? Well, that wasn't exactly the truth. It's more like... visions. I keep seeing myself in them - the version of me who was still in despair. And it's not just memories of what I've done; he talks to me and keeps trying to convince me to let him take over. It's fucking creepy, and I can't get him to stop." 

The former despairs were silent. The revelation that their former selves might be able to speak to them was shocking say the least. 

"Can you see him now?" Kyoko asked. 

"No, the bastard only shows up while I'm sleeping," Fuyuhiko explained. 

"Dude," Kazuichi gasped, "That's crazy. How long have you been dealing with this?" 

"Since I first woke up," Fuyuhiko said, "I haven't had a peaceful night in days." 

"Young master..." Peko gently held his hand. 

"I'm guessing I'm the only one getting these dreams?" 

"Yeah, but you aren't the only one having flashbacks," Hajime said, "We all have... problems, aside from Peko and Ibuki." 

"Aside from the amnesia, Ibuki is problem free!" the musician confirmed. 

"I suspect that our deaths in the simulation have completely erased our memory of the past two years," Peko theorized, "Because of that, we are likely not at risk for these flashbacks. Although, just because we don't remember doesn't mean the others won't." 

"That's true," Kyoko said, "We'll have to wait and see what happens when they wake up. In the meantime, Fuyuhiko?" 

"Yeah?" 

"Let us know if you have any more of these distressing visions." 

Fuyuhiko sighed, "Sure, whatever." 

There was a sudden knock on the door, surprising Kyoko and the former Despairs. "Oh, I asked Makoto to come," Kyoko said, going to the door, "Sorry I didn't tell you." 

She opened the door revealing Makoto, who immediately asked, "What's going on? Is everything alright?" 

"I've sorted it out; I'll tell you later," she said. 

"Oh, okay," Makoto said, "Well, if nothing's wrong, we should head to the docks. They'll be showing up soon, after all." 

"'They'?" Hajime questioned. 

"We're bringing in some extra help here on the island," Makoto explained, "Since more of you have been waking up, we figured it would be difficult taking care of all of you with just the three of us, so we called in a few trustworthy friends to help us out. Want to come and meet them with us?" 

"I'll pass," Fuyuhiko sighed, flopping down on his bed. Peko's desire to stay by his side didn't need to be said. 

"I shall come with you," Sonia declared, "Will you accompany me, Hajime?" 

"Oh, of course." 

"I'll come with, too!" Kazuichi said. 

"Thank you..." Sonia said, her voice slightly strained. 

"So that just leaves me and Ibuki," Akane said, "I'm no good at small talk, so... Wanna race around the island?" 

"Do I!" Ibuki gasped. 

"Do you?" Akane egged her on. 

"I do!" Ibuki shot up and, after briefly stumbling on the rug, dashed out the door with Akane hot on her heels. 

"Well then," Kyoko said, "Shall we go?"


End file.
